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Dinner Tonight: Ginger Fried Rice

Posted by Nick Kindelsperger, May 19, 2008 at 4:30 PM

There were moments of doubt. About three different times during the process of cooking this meal I turned to the fiancée and said we should just scrap it and make a more traditional fried rice recipe. Many of the hallmarks of a fried rice recipe were ignored, including no high heat and no scrambling of eggs. But, just like the eggplant I made last week, I was calmed by the fact this was a Jean-Georges recipe. And it certainly doesn’t taste like any fried rice I’ve had before. The flavors are perfectly clean thanks to the ginger and, because of the leeks, slightly sweet. But the best part is the runny yolk that drips over every grain of rice, making it a much more cohesive dish than it first appears.

You can just toss the rice in a bowl and flop the fried egg on top, but the dramatic presentation pictured above is surprisingly easy. Just put half of the rice into a small bowl, set a plate on top of it, then flip both over so that the rice bowl is upside-down. The rice should be mounded nicely on the plate. Flatten the top slightly with a spatula and set the fried egg on top. Of course, as soon we started eating we just busted the yolk and mixed everything up. But still...

About the author: Nick Kindelsperger is a co-founder of The Paupered Chef, a blog dedicated to saving time and money while enjoying food in every way possible. He sells wine for a living and lives in Columbus, Ohio.

Ginger Fried Rice

- serves 2 -
Adapted from Asian Flavors of Jean-Georges by Jean-Georges Vongerichten

Ingredients

1/4 cup canola oil
1 tablespoon garlic, minced
1 tablespoons fresh ginger, minced
1 cup leeks, thinly sliced white and pale green parts only
2 cups rice, preferably day old or at least cool
1 teaspoons sesame oil
2 teaspoons soy sauce
2 large eggs
Salt

Procedure

1. In a large pan pour half of the oil in over medium heat. Toss in the leeks and cook until they are softened, but not browned. It should take about 10 minutes. Turn the heat to medium-low if they start to develop any color. Season with salt.

2. Dump in the rice and stir it together with the leeks. Cook until it is hot, just a few minutes. Turn off the heat. Divide the rice into two plates. Drizzle each with half of the soy sauce and sesame oil.

3. Meanwhile, in another large pan pour the rest of the canola oil over medium heat. When hot, add the garlic and ginger. Stirring occasionally, cook until the garlic is nicely browned, just a few minutes. Remove the garlic and ginger and drain on a paper towel.

4. Fry the eggs sunny-side up in the remaining oil left from frying the garlic and ginger. When done, place one egg on each mound of rice. Sprinkle the garlic and ginger on top. Season with salt. Add more soy sauce or sesame oil if you so desire.

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Tags: Asian, ginger, rice, vegetarian

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